The SBA said Wednesday it is working with FEMA and otheragencies to find out which small businesses and homeowners willneed recovery assistance from the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

“Many communities are still feeling the effects of SuperstormSandy, including power outages and flooding. The importance oflistening to instructions and safety information from your localofficials and FEMA cannot be understated,” the SBA said.

Federal response teams are already providing assistance toaffected communities, the agency said, adding the SBA is closelycoordinating with its federal partners to share information in theimmediate aftermath of the storm.

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The SBA offered the following channels for updates andassistance:

• For the latest on the federal government's response to Sandy,read FEMA's blog or follow updates on Twitter.
• For emergency shelter, download the Red Cross Hurricane app, visit the Red Cross website, or check local mediaoutlets. The SBA said you can register on the Red Cross Safe and Well website, a secure andeasy-to-use online tool that helps families connect duringemergencies.
• Persons can also download the FEMA smartphone app or text SHELTER and yourzip code to 43362 (4FEMA). Standard rates apply.

The SBA said it plays an important role in disaster recoveryefforts for businesses and homeowners. As disaster assessments anddeclarations are made, various SBA disaster recovery loan programsbecome available to eligible applicants. The agency said itcontinue to highlight these programs as communities turn tolonger-term recovery efforts.

For more information about SBA's disaster assistance programs,visit www.sba.gov/disaster or call the disasterassistance center at 1-800-659-2955.